A Queens man was sentenced to 65 years to life in prison for raping three women in Hempstead between 2015 and 2020. A DNA swab taken from the defendant after his arrest for a rape in 2020 linked him to all three incidents.
On January 25, 2015, Adell Hardwick approached a 42-year-old woman and walked with her to an abandoned house at 194 Main Street in Hempstead, then raped the victim in the house. After a struggle, she was able to get away and contacted police. The victim was taken to Nassau University Medical Center (NUMC) after the assault where a DNA swab was collected during a sexual assault examination.
On June 4, 2019, Hardwick approached a 51-year-old woman who was meeting with friends at Denton Green Park in Hempstead. After her friends left, Hardwick grabbed the woman and dragged her into the bushes, where he raped her. The victim was able to escape and contacted police. She was brought to NUMC where a sexual assault examination was conducted, and a DNA swab was collected.
On January 30, 2020, Hardwick approached at 55-year-old woman on the street in Hempstead and forced her into an abandoned garage. He violently strangled the victim, raped her, and fled the scene. The victim contacted police and was immediately brought to NUMC for an examination where a DNA sample was collected.
On April 23, 2020, Hardwick was arrested for the January attack by detectives with the Nassau County Police Department’s Special Victims Squad after an investigation by the District Attorney’s Cold Case Unit. A buccal swab obtained after his arrest was compared to the DNA samples retrieved after each of the incidents and positively identified the defendant as the attacker.
Hardwick, 36, was convicted on September 6, 2024, after a bench trial before Judge Teresa Corrigan of three counts of Rape in the First Degree (a B violent felony); Predatory Sexual Assault (an A-II felony); and three counts of Criminal Sexual Act in the First Degree (a B violent felony). He was acquitted of one count of Predatory Sexual Assault. On September 26, he was sentenced today to 65 years to life in prison.
“Adell Hardwick targeted multiple vulnerable women with sexual violence over a period of five years, forcing them into isolated areas where he ruthlessly raped them. DNA evidence collected after each of the attacks was essential to finally connecting this defendant to each of these horrific crimes. Today’s prison sentence ensures that Adell Hardwick will never harm another woman again in Nassau County,” said Nassau County District Attorney Anne Donnelly. “No unsolved case is ever forgotten by my office. My Cold Case Unit will follow every lead and reexamine every piece of evidence to get justice for victims of violent crimes.”